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Letheringsett
Letheringsett lies in the Glaven Valley just to the
east of Holt. The village
contains the last working water mill in Norfolk.
John Betjeman was friendly with Roy and Wilhelmine
Harrod who lived at Letheringsett Hall. After a visit to
the hall in 1955 Betjeman was inspired to write his poem
Lord Cozens Hardy which is set in the village.
Here is the last verse of the poem which mentions The
King's Head pub - which is still open for business. The
mausoleum mentioned in the poem, though, was fictional.
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But when, Lord Cozens Hardy,
November stars are bright,
And the King's Head Inn at Letheringsett
Is shutting for the night,
The villagers have told me
That they do not like to pass
Near your curious mausoleum
Moon-shadowed on the grass
For fear of seeing walking
In the season of All Souls
That first Lord Cozens Hardy,
The Master of the Rolls. |
Cozens Hardy was also the author of History of
Letheringsett in the County of Norfolk - which includes the following epitaph
which can be found in
the village churchyard. It concerns Johnson Jex who was
the village blacksmith and also a remarkable, self-taught
scientist.
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This stone is erected
To mark the burial place of
JOHNSON JEX
Who died January 5th 1852 aged 73 years
Born in obscurity
He passed his days at Letheringsett as
A village blacksmith.
By the force of an original and inventive genius
Combined with indomitable perseverance
He mastered some of the greatest difficulties of science
Advancing from the forge to the crucible
And from the horse-shoe to the chronometer:
Acquiring by mental labour and philosophic research
A vast and varied amount of
Mechanical skill and general knowledge.
He was a man of scrupulous integrity and moral worth:
But regardless of wealth
And sensible to the voice of fame
He lived and died a scientific anchorite
___
There is a spirit in man: and the
inspiration of
The Almighty giveth him understanding. |
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Links:
Betjeman
Society
Letheringsett Mill
St. Andrew's Church |
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Supported
by Norfolk Tourism